No Shrubs

After spending a day in Ajaccio doing laundry we collected our rental car and headed north along the west coast to the Golfe de Porto. We’d had multiple recommendations from GR20 hikers that this was a spectacular part of the island so we ventured forth to see for ourselves.

Piana is known for it’s dramatic red rocks which hug the coastline for several km (it’s Part of a UNESCO world heritage site) whilst the town itself, with a population of around 500, is a quaint red roofed stop off point with many restaurants and pretty vistas.

Further down the hill which consists of a very narrow winding 2 lane road, is Porto, another small town who’s main industry is boat tours around the spectacular coastline and the nearby nature reserve of Scandola and small village of Girolata (only accessible by foot or boat)

We found a great campground called Sole E Vista which had great accommodation options from the traditional camping (BYO tent) to basic ‘yurts’ (Lodge Club Village) to simple cabins (50m2 bungalows) with basic interior, shower, toilet, beds, mattresses, kitchen equipment for 50euro / night : #itsabargain: although something to note is that it has no linens, towels or soap. There is a SPAR 4 mins walk away for the eating and drinking essentials and for sleeping, we had our sleeping bags, and towels. Great low cost option for those wanting a big step up from sleeping in a tent.

We stayed for 4 nights and used it as a base to explore further.

Day 1: We climbed Cap del Ortu followed by lunch in Piana. (Fun Score: S-1 / T-1 )

Day 2: Boat tour around Cappo Rossi, Scandola (Fun Score: S-2 / T-1 )

Day 3: T went for a hike and I stayed home (reading/yoga)

Day 4: Headed inland to Casamaccioli (with a short hike down the Gorges de Spulunca).